Warren Family Update - July 2009

Greetings from our little corner of Swaziland! As most of you are experiencing some pretty HOT temperatures, and enjoying those beautiful summer nights grilling outside ... it feels more like we should be celebrating Christmas here! Although I must say that I am thankful for the change in temperatures, and not complaining!!!! We pray that each of you had a wonderful 4th of July celebrating the gift of our freedom.

As I sat to begin to write this update to you on all the happenings here in Swaziland, God gently tugged at my heart and had a different plan for this month's newsletter. Today I'd like to share with you what I was reading when He spoke .....

"And then he told them, 'Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.' " Mark 16:15 (NLT)

(The following story was taken from a Proverbs 31 Ministry Devotion I received written by Tracie Miles, www.proverbs31.org)

"I recently heard about a little boy who was involved in a serious accident, and lay in a coma in the hospital with massive internal injuries. The following day, the little boy's kindergarten teacher was talking to the students about the accident, and asking for suggestions on what they could do for their injured classmate. Several children made suggestions such as taking food, writing cards and drawing him pictures. Then one little girl suggested that the class could pray for him. A few seconds passed, and then a young boy, who had been intently listening to the discussion, asked quietly, "What is prayer?" The little girl proceeded to tell him how Christians pray to Jesus. The boy looked at her inquisitively for a moment, and then said, "Who is Jesus?"

This little girl, along with a few other classmates, proceeded to witness to this young boy, telling him all about Jesus. They shared that He is God's Son and was sent to earth to die on the cross for our sins so that we could have eternal life and go to Heaven. The teacher stood there with tears in her eyes, as these precious little children, barely knowing their ABC's, shared the gospel with intense knowledge, passion and commitment, and without any hesitation or fear. They were proud of their Jesus, and wanted to share God's love and promises with this little boy, who was completely unaware of Jesus.

We can be there too, just in a different circumstance, with different people, and at a different time. I was reminded that opportunities for sharing the good news of Jesus are everywhere: around every corner, in the next cubicle, in every neighborhood, and in every classroom. We simply have to grasp the opportunities that are presented. Scripture tells us that everyone will be accountable to God (Romans 14:12), even if they have not heard of Him, which is the basis for global missions work. As Christians, it is our duty to make sure that people become aware of Jesus.

As I sat and read this story, my heart just melted. It reminded me again of how we need to be continually praying for God's "eyes" every day to see those all around us who are lost or need encouraging, the ones He is calling US to share His message of love with. I couldn't wait to share the story with Bert, and after I finished reading it to him, he shared this story with me ....

"It was past noon as Pastor Masuku and I were returning from follow up ministry work and making our way along the long gravel road back home. We came upon four teenage boys who were flagging us for a ride into the next town. (It is very common here to give rides to those who are asking if you are able, so to these young boys it was not uncommon for a perfect stranger to stop and pick them up.) After the four boys squeezed into the back seat and we were on our way, I told them that this ride was going to be different. It was going to cost them to ride. Silence fell among them all as they heard my words. I asked if they would like for me to tell them the cost of the ride, and nervously one of them answered, “Yes”. I explained that the cost of this ride would simply be that they would have to listen to the difference that Christ had made in my life. They listened as I shared my testimony. We were now entering the small town where they needed to go. As I was pulling up to the curb to let them out I asked if there was anyone who would also like to have the assurance of salvation in their life as I had in mine. Instantly one of the boys said, “Yes, I would like to know how!" So, we all got out of the truck, and stood right there on the sidewalk in town. We explained from the Bible how to repent and place your belief in Christ for eternal life in Him. Today, Mandla Tsabedze Nkulalini is our brother in Christ. The cost of his ride cost the same as our ride ... nothing, but to repent and believe, receiving the gift of salvation through the grace and mercy God the Father has for us all."

The people we encounter can be a divine appointment… whether it be here in Africa or back home in the US. It IS our responsibility to share His message of love, we are not responsible for their decision .... ultimately that is their choice. BUT how can they make this life-changing decision if they've never heard? May God shine in and through you as you continue to serve Him wherever He places you ....


Praises/Prayer Requests:

~ Praise the Lord for a wonderful time of ministry with Hunter & Brinkley Johnson (South Roanoke Association Team), and Rev. Steve Willis & Jeremy Allen (West Virginia Team), and for their hearts to serve and share the love of Christ with the people of Swaziland.
~ Continue to pray for direction in future orphan and HIV/AIDS ministry, and also for partnerships with other mission organizations. Meetings are being scheduled to meet with Samaritan's Purse, and the Red Cross. Pray for the Lord's will to be accomplished.
~ Pray for the Lord to be glorified through the new structural changes that are being implemented beginning this month by the IMB. (www.imb.org)
~ Pray for the many new believers throughout Swaziland, as they begin their walk with the Lord. Pray that they would seek Him with all their hearts and be grounded in His word daily.
~ Continue to pray for Lisa's Dad, Lloyd Claiborne, as he continues to recover from his stroke. Pray for strength and patience as he seeks to regain use of his left side.


Thank you for all your love, support and prayers and the many different ways you are ministering to our family.

~ The Warren Family ~
bert, lisa, jessie, matthew & sarah

SPECIAL NOTE: We are in the final stages of completing a Ministry DVD to be shared with our prayer partners/churches back in the States. If you are interested in receiving one, please email us your mailing address. We'd like to say a "BIG" thank you to our home church, Euto Baptist, for copying and distributing these DVD's !!!!

Take a walk through June ...

What a GREAT month this was ... new friendships, ministry and family fun!

This month we celebrated Lacie's 5th birthday, and enjoyed spending the day in Mbabane. We also got to meet her Gogo Polly (Monica's Mom) who had just arrived in from Florida. What a great day of food, friends, fun and fellowship, thanks Allen Family!!!!

We welcomed a new volunteer team from West Virginia, Rev. Steve Willis and Jeremy Allen, as they served at Phuzumoya Baptist Church teaching church leadership classes. We also had the privilege of hosting Hunter and Brinkley Johnson (sisters) from the South Roanoke Baptist Association (NC). They came to spend a week with our family, and served in different areas throughout the Lubombo region. Please pray for Hunter and Brinkley as they return back to the US on July 8. They have spent a month here in Swaziland serving with the Allens in Mbabane, and also with the Myers in Nhlangano. What a blessing it was to meet and serve alongside them all ~ thank you for your friendship, and for coming to share the love of Christ!


Swazi Team in Mbabane ...
and for those of you who know how much my crew likes their picture taken, this is quite a task to get a picture, thanks Hunter :)





















Matthew flying again ... that boy loves being in the air!




















Rev. Steve Willis, Jeremy Allen, and the pastors/church leaders in the Lubombo Region




















Prayer Time at Phuzumoya




















Slight road block in Kruger :)




















Say "cheese" (chez) everyone ...
Hunter & Brinkley with the orphans at Phuzumoya




















Enjoying meal time at Phuzumoya.
Please pray for this church as they minister to the many orphans in their community each day.




















The kids enjoying playing under the parachute ...




















Collecting firewood with Pastor Sigwane




















Ready, aim, fire ... Jessie's new favorite hobby.
You never know what you will see on the dirt roads!




















Sarah and Matthew enjoying "riding with the top down" ...
Sarah likes to play "I SPY" ... thanks Matthew for being a great big brother :)




















Our new yard swing for the kids ...
and of course the biggest kid in the family has to try it out too :)




















Our first pumpkin ... mmm, the pumpkin muffins turned out good!

Happy Father's Day ....

"The love and care of a father is as essential as sunlight is in our lives. It is his protection that shelters us, his care that nurtures us, his guidance that leads us and his love that fills us with joy." Anonymous

Happy Father's Day to OUR special Dads!!!

It's rare we get them all in ONE picture with Daddy!
Grandaddy NEVER likes having his picture taken, atleast we got a side shot. Thanks to Sarah for getting his attention off the camera :)
Papa enjoying a Sunday morning with his fellow usher, and grandson Gabe!
Uncle Bill (aka "Da Swamp Monster") Looks like he got the one who didn't get away!








Praying that each of you have a wonderful day, and that you know just how much we love and appreciate you all!

Field Trip to Hlane Game Park

Sarah was invited to go along with her class from Thembelisha today on their field trip to Hlane Game Park here in Swaziland. She had the BEST time and enjoyed being with her teachers and friends again! She talked all afternoon about the lions, leopards, elephants, birds, and not to mention the crocodile she touched! After their drive through with the game guard, the class enjoyed a braii, complete with roasting marshmallows.

A special thank you to Auntie Donna and Sisi for remembering her, and including her on this great trip!

June: Pastor Mandla Sigwane and Phuzumoya Baptist Church

Beginning this month, we will be featuring some of our churches here in Swaziland, and their pastors. Our prayer is that this will increase and strengthen their prayer support, AND at the same time give you "eyes" to see who they are and an avenue to pray specifically for them as a church.

We are asking each of our pastors to share their story, along with their vision for their church and community, and specific prayer requests. Our plan is to feature a different church each month.


Church Name: Phuzumoya Baptist Church
Location: Phuzumoya, Swaziland
Pastor’s Name: Mandla Sigwane
Pastor’s Testimony:
Pastor Sigwane grew up in Manzini as a “street kid”. This led him into what appeared would be a life of crime. After being convicted of robbery and serving his sentence in a Swazi prison he accepted Jesus as his Savior and has never been the same since. Pastor Sigwane became the pastor of Phuzumoya Baptist Church and has mentored many young men and helps them to grow in becoming passionate about God’s word and their desire to see others accept Christ as their personal Savior as well. During the past several years this passion has led to the start of five other churches.

Currently this church hosts a school for orphaned children and also provides daily food preparation for them, and the teaching of life skills. They have also formed a mission team, comprised of members from other churches in this region as well. Pastor Sigwane has a passionate desire to reach people for Christ, mentor future leaders, meet physical needs of the surrounding communities, and start other Baptist Churches so that the pure word of God is carried throughout this land.

If you would like to pray for Pastor Sigwane and Phuzumoya Baptist Church, here are some of their specific prayer requests.

Please pray for:

-The many orphans and HIV/AIDS children that they support each day.
-Additional support in the mentoring of church leadership.
-Travel expenses as this is a mission-minded church and they constantly go out in faith even when they do not have the financial means of returning to their homes, eating, lodging, and sometimes even reaching their destination.
-For their encouragement as they trust that God will continue to meet their needs and strengthen their walk.
-For the many young men that are being mentored at this time, and that they would grow spiritually strong and resilient against Satan.
-For Pastor Sigwane’s family as Satan attempts to divide them and thwart their efforts.
-For renewed strength each day as it is a constant battle just for personal survival.

Cast off the old, and be made new ....

While attending services at Maphungwane, we were blessd to see this Gogo come forward. She was very weak, and feeble in her walk, and made her way through the crowd to share her testimony. She began sharing that she was a traditional witchdoctor, but has now burned all of her charms and is seeking the Lord. Please pray for this Gogo as we know Satan is not pleased, especially with this public profession to those who live in her community.

Warren Family Update - June 2009

A "wintery hello" to each of you from all the Warrens here in Tshaneni! As you trade out your jeans for shorts and flip-flops, Winter is beginning to make itself known here in our little corner of Swaziland. Although our winter will be nothing like a North Carolina winter, it is a nice change in temperatures!
Change is truly in the air everywhere ... when July 1st rolls around our region as we know it, CESA ~ Central, Eastern and Southern Africa ~ will no longer exist. Beginning July, the new restructuring of the IMB will be put into place, and you will now come to know our region of the world as "Sub-Saharan Africa Affinity Group". Please join us in continuing to pray for wisdom and guidance for IMB leadership as they implement and lead us through these changes.
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Ministry Update

"Whoever speaks let him speak, as it were, the very utterances of God;
whoever serves, let him serve by the strength which God supplies;
so that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ,
to whom belongs the glory and dominion forever and ever."
1 Peter 4:11

When our family moved to Tshaneni back in mid-January of this year we began praying for direction and guidance as to what and where God would have us focus our efforts. Our team members are each assigned to different areas of Swaziland, all of which are large, with many communities that are rural and spread apart. When Bert began to study the map of our region he found himself consistently being drawn to one particular area. In the Lubombo region, the main industry is the production of sugar cane, and the majority of the Swazi people here work in this industry. We have found that if you are not employed with this industry there is little to no sustainable support. These are the people that are mainly overlooked and forgotten. God began directing our path to His people in this forgotten area, which we now know as Mafacula. It is located at the base of a mountain just beyond the many, many sugar cane fields off of our main road. We began asking you to join us in praying for this area specifically and it's people that we call "the people beyond the sugar cane". As we started to ask and learn more about this area, Bert found only a few people that knew exactly how to get there. One morning as he was with a member of Vuvulane Baptist Church, God led them to someone that knew this area very well. They were taken in and introduced to a local pastor, Masuku. He was saved through reading the Word of God in the Bible his father left to him. As an answer to your prayers, God led Bert to this pastor and their relationship has grown over these last four months. Pastor Masuku shares the desire to reach this/his whole community with the message of Christ. So far, we have seen two revivals and the showing of the Jesus Film in this area all with amazing response. Pastor Masuku has also been able to travel with Bert to several Baptist related functions and training sessions, which has given him the opportunity to connect with other pastors in the area. Just recently, he and his church, Mountain Church, have requested to join the Baptist Convention of Swaziland, seeking to join their brothers and sisters in Christ to evangelize their country. There has been great interest to learn more about the Bible, and Bert has begun teaching weekly classes on Thursdays in this community. Through your prayers, God has also opened doors that we could not open. We have been introduced to several community groups that work directly with the oppressed peoples of HIV/AIDS here, and many have come forward to reveal their sickness and need for help. Please join us as we pray for this new opportunity and that much will be accomplished for the Kingdom of Christ, both spiritually and physically.

We cannot say enough how much your prayers, support and involvement in the ministry here mean to us, and our entire team. Throughout the past several years there has been consistent, dedicated partnerships, prayer and mission teams dedicating their efforts and resources to reach the country of Swaziland for Christ. In our short time here on the field, we have been so blessed to see the fruits of their labor and prayers with much being accomplished for the Kingdom! Some have tilled the land, some sowed the seeds, some watered, some prayed, and some harvested ... all are ESSENTIAL! Harvest time has come to Swaziland, thank you for partnering with the One who brings the Harvest, and join us in giving Him all the Glory!
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Family Update

After much prayer, another change has taken place in our lives, and it is that we have now begun homeschooling all three of the children. Before arriving in Swaziland, we felt strongly about having the kids plugged in socially, and giving them the opportunity to experience their new culture and meet friends of their own age through attending a local school. We are so thankful for the opportunity for them to have attended Thembelisha Preparatory School. The teachers and staff welcomed us with open arms, and went above and beyond to make sure the children transitioned well into their school. They have made many friends that I know we will continue to see. Fortunately, we will have the chance to see many of them when we visit church in Simunye. Now that we have "settled in" to our area of ministry, we have a better feel of our job, what it takes to host volunteer teams, and are also seeing new ministry begin to grow. We feel that this change will give us more flexibility with our schedules/ministry, allowing us to be more accommodating to our volunteer teams, AND at the same time giving the children "first hand" experience in more of the ministry while continuing their education here. It seems that our time here is beginning to quickly pass by, and we want to be good stewards of our time and of the support we so graciously receive from the IMB and our churches back home. We have such a peace about this decision, and are excited to see how the Lord is going to work through this change.

We would like to thank you for continuing to remember Lisa's parents in your prayers as her Dad recovers from a recent stroke. There has been a change in his rehab facility. He has now been moved from Bryant T. Aldridge Rehab Center to Autumn Care in Nashville, NC. We are so thankful for the staff at both locations, and their willingness to communicate with us through email. He has settled in well, and is continuing physical, speech and occupation therapy there. A praise for this week is that he was finally able to pass his swallowing test which will allow him to eat food for himself!! This will BOOST his spirits for sure :) Your prayers and love have meant so much as you have walked with us through these past months, and continue to be a blessing to us and her parents.
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Praise and Prayer Requests

Praise the Lord that Sarah accepted the Lord has HER personal Savior and followed in believer's baptism on May 24th! Pray that she will grow in the Lord each day, and that she will follow Him all her days!

Pray for direction in future orphan and HIV/AIDS ministry, and also for partnerships with other mission organizations. Pray for direction in trying to find and meet the needs of those suffering and dying from this disease that infects so many here in Swaziland. Pray for wisdom in teaching the church how to care for these patients and their families and that they would have the opportunity to share the message of the Great Physician and that many would have open hearts to receive Him as their personal Savior.

Praise the Lord for the safe arrival of Hunter and Brinkley Johnson (sisters) this week. Pray for the Lord to use each of their talents and gifts to minister to the Swazi people and for their continued strength as they minister with our team through July 8th. Also pray for safe travel as they serve in many different areas of Swaziland.

June 12th, Polly Trice (Monica Allen's mother) arrives in Swaziland to spend several weeks with the Allen's. Pray for safe travel and a wonderful time with her family.

Pray for our next volunteer team from West Virginia, arriving June 13 - 18, as they lead discipleship training at Phuzumoya Baptist. Praise the Lord for this new partnership, and pray for the Lord to bless their time here in Swaziland and for safe travel as they return back to the States next Thursday.

The National Youth Leader’s Retreat on June 26 -27. Pray for this important retreat for all youth leaders of the Swazi Baptist churches. Hunter Johnson will be the main speaker. Pray God will move in a mighty way among the hearts of our youth leaders.

Please continue to pray for Wayne Myers' brother and sister struggling with cancer. Pray that the Lord will draw Terry and JoAnn into His healing embrace. Also continue to remember Wayne and his family in the loss of his youngest brother, Larry.

Continue to pray for Lisa's Dad, Lloyd Claiborne, as he continues to recover from his stroke. Pray for strength and patience has he seeks to regain use of his left side.

Thank you for all your love, support and prayers!